The 'Cats took four championships at last weekend's Eastern Michigan Open. Juniors Dustin Fox (Galion, Ohio/Galion) at heavyweight, Mike Tamillow (Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick) at 197 lbs., Jake Herbert (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny), ranked No. 1 at 184 lbs. and Ryan Lang (North Royalton, Ohio/St. Edward), top-ranked at 141 lbs all went undefeated. Lang was named this week's Big Ten Wrestler of the Week for his performance.
A big story of the open was Wildcat freshman Brandon Precin (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg) at 125 lbs. who knocked off fourth-ranked and top-seeded Mark Moos of Michigan to start the tournament.
The seven-team event will feature NCAA qualifiers, All-Americans and ranked grapplers from various divisioins and conference. Bigelevenwrestling.net has pegged Navy's showdown with both NU and Wisconsin as their "Matches of the Week".
A Look at the Teams in the NU Duals:
University of Indianapolis Greyhounds:
• The Greyhounds are ranked No. 7 in the NCAA Division II Wrestling Coaches Association's preseason poll and return all four All-America wrestlers from last year, a season which saw UIndy finish 10th at the national championships, the highest national finish in the program's history.
• All four returning All-Americans are also ranked in their respective weight classes. Shane Perkey, at 133, appears third in the individual rankings. Charlie Pingleton is ranked No. 2 at 149. Mike Jackson, who was the runner-up at 174 pounds in 2005-06, is the preseason No. 4. Jose Navarro is ranked fourth in the heavyweight class.
Cornell College Rams:
• Cornell, which had a record-setting 15-9-1 dual season a year ago, is ranked No. 16 in Division III.
• Junior 125-pounder Chris Heilman is rated third. Heilman, one of eight returning starters for the Rams, was 33-9 last season, placing fourth in the Iowa Conference and seventh in the nation.
• Another national qualifier, sophomore 141-pounder Dave Paramski , suffered a hand injury in the preseason and will not be available until January. He was 33-11 with seven falls last season, placing third in the IIAC.
• There are six Iowa Conference teams ranked in the top 24 in the preseason - defending national champion Wartburg (second), Luther (fourth), Buena Vista (11th), Coe (12th), Cornell (16th) and Loras (24th).
University of Chicago Maroons:
• Senior Phil Kruzel is the two-time defending University Athletic Association champion at 174-pounds.
• Senior Mike Bishof placed third at the 2006 Great Lakes Regional at 165 lbs.
• Sophomore Ben Hart finished fourth at the 2006 Great Lake Regional at 125 lbs.
• Senior Andrew Bribriesco and sophomore Tom Nero posted sixth-place finishes at 141 and 285 pounds, respectively, at the 2006 Great Lakes Regional.
Navy Midshipmen:
• Six Navy wrestlers finished second, while three more placed in the season-opening Eastern Michigan Open.
• Returning NCAA qualifier Joe Baker, ranked 13th, made an appearance in the championship bout at 133 pounds. Baker earned a pair of major decisions
• Senior Brad Canterbury had a solid showing at 141 pounds where he made his way into the championship match.
• Senior John Cox, one-of-three returning NCAA qualifiers, is ranked seventh nationally at 149 lbs. He fell in the championship match at the Eastern Michigan Open.
Wisconsin Badgers:
• The Badgers kicked off the 2006-07 season by going 2-0 in their double-dual match against Dubuque and UW-Oshkosh. Wisconsin rolled by Dubuque 49-0 before defeating UW-Oshkosh 40-3.
• Seven Badger wrestlers earned top-20 rankings this season, with two in the top-five at their respective weight classes. Both Tyler Turner and Craig Henning are ranked No. 4, while Dallas Herbert is ranked 10th. Also receiving rankings were four other Badgers, including heavyweight Kyle Massey, rated 16th. At 125 lb.s Collin Cudd napped a No. 17 ranking.
Cumberland Bulldogs:
• Cumberland, out of the NAIA has already competed in two events this year. The Bulldogs wrestled at the Lindenwood Open before taking on Newberry College last weekend. Cumberland fell 31-7.
• They return three National Qualifiers in Daniel Rosbottom, Luke Borneman and Eric McCray, and All-American Desean Willis.
Schedule of Matches:
9 a.m.
Mat 1: Cumberland v. Navy
Mat 2: Wisconsin v. Indianapolis
Mat 3: Cornell College v. Chicago
11 a.m.
Mat 1: Cornell College v. Cumberland
Mat 2: Northwestern v. Chicago
Mat 3: Wisconsin v. Navy
1 p.m.
Mat 1: Cornell College v. Indianapolis
Mat 2: Northwestern v. Navy
Mat 3: Wisconsin v. Cumberland
3 p.m.
Mat 1: Cumberland v. Chicago
Mat 2: Indianapolis v. Northwestern
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